He's Multimedia Madsen

By GINA PICCALO AND LOUISE ROUG

Aug. 30, 2002 12 AM PT

Actor Michael Madsen is still jet-lagged from a recent transatlantic flight from Paris, and he’s sitting in his office, a bit overwhelmed by the task ahead of him. “My secretary has vanished,” he says in a near growl. “She ran off to Palm Springs with her boyfriend.” Madsen has a lot to keep track of these days. He’s starring in a flurry of new films in the coming months, including one he has co-written and is producing himself, and his third book is due out in November. “It’s my next ‘cool’ wave,” he says.

As Madsen reorganizes his desk and clears his throat he remembers something of his summer travels: “Have you ever been in Paris on Bastille Day?” The answer is “no,” so he paints a mental pic- ture of jets storming over the Champs-Elysees and a breathtaking fireworks show above the darkened Eiffel Tower. Those French, he says, “they can give the U.S. a run for their money....” Madsen’s memory stalls him. Then he adds, “I’m just happy to be home.”

The actor has spent much of this year on location. First he was in London shooting a rare “good guy role” as Halle Berry’s boss in the upcoming James Bond picture “Die Another Day,” starring Madsen’s Malibu neighbor Pierce Brosnan. Then he was in Paris to play a bad guy in “Blueberry,” the $40-million “mystical” western directed by Jan Kounen based on the French comic book series. That picture also required Madsen to spend three months in Mexico and make a trip to Spain.

In September he stays close to home to shoot Quentin Tarantino’s new film “Kill Bill,” starring David Carradine as Bill, Madsen as his alcoholic brother and Lucy Liu, Uma Thurman and Daryl Hannah. It’s his first picture with Tarantino since his role in the director’s 1992 debut “Reservoir Dogs,” in which Madsen played “Mr. Blonde,” a deranged ex-con who sadistically toys with a man he thinks is a cop by cutting off his ear while dancing to “Stuck in the Middle With You.”

In November, Madsen’s third book will be released. The collection of poetry inspired by his travels, his relationships and ‘50s nostalgia is titled “The Blessing of the Hounds” and was written, he says, on napkins and matchbooks during his movie shoots. “Eventually you have enough to put together a book,” he says. “I never set out to write a book ... it’s something that happened by accident.”

Later that month, Madsen starts shooting “Red Light Runners,” a film he co-wrote, is producing and stars in as a man who manipulates the lives of people whose photos were taken by cameras at stoplights. “It’s a social commentary told by nefarious people,” he says.

Though Madsen relishes the time at home with his wife and sons, he notes that his hard work is an important move toward more creative independence. “I’m tired of being a puppet,” he says. “I have reinvested myself in my future.”

Slimming Lessons

On New Year’s Eve 2001, book agent Ed Victor was getting dressed for a party thrown by Candice Bergen, a friend. Try as he did, Victor just couldn’t get into his party attire. “I was sucking in my gut,” he said by phone from London, “but I couldn’t button my trousers.”

All those literary lunches had taken their toll.

Victor, the agent for Bergen, Erica Jong, Nigella Lawson, Mel Brooks and Tina Brown, among others, decided it was time for a diet. To keep himself on track, he wrote a book about dieting as well. The result, “The Obvious Diet” (Arcade Publishing, 2002), is a mix of recipes (from other cookbooks) and advice from ladies (and men) who lunch--too much.

The book includes a foreword by Lawson, an introduction by Larry King (who shares his tuna salad recipe) and a chapter entitled “The Secrets of Famous People”--with contributions by Jong, Brooks and King. Brown, the former New Yorker and Talk editrix, dispenses this unforgettable piece of advice: “Portion-wise the easiest thing for me to remember was that the meat or fish on my plate should be NO BIGGER THAN A DECK OF CARDS.”

The impetus for “The Obvious Diet” was Victor’s desire to fit in his trousers again--and his desire to try on the shoes of his clients. “I’ve been a midwife to literally thousands of books,” said Victor. “I wanted to be the parent of one to see what it was like.” So?

“As empathetic as I am to my authors, it’s different when you’re the rabbit in the headlights--the snide remarks, the reviews,” some of which have pointed out his propensity to mention the names of friends.

“These happen to be people who are famous,” said Victor. “What can you do if your friends have names? Not drop them? A number of celebrity diets are in there because people in the public eye ... have to stay thin.”

He got a call on the other line. “That was Pete Towns- hend,” he said. Townshend, who in his blurb for the book calls Victor a “dietetic shaman,” is staying thin too.

Sighting

Laurence Fishburne at La Golondrina at Plaza Olvera on Olvera Street on Friday.

City of Angles runs Tuesday and Friday. Email: angles@latimes .com.